Customer Reviews

Mazda Miata MX- 5 Performance Projects

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Keith Tanner knows the Miata and he is great at passing along his experience and knowledge.

I'm no mechanic extraordinaire but I have always wanted to have a fun car to work on so I bought a 1990 Miata. Since purchasing the car I have been through several of the projects listed in his book. Each time it was Keith's guidance and experience that made me feel comfortable with what I was doing. It is really nice to have re-assurance when you are drilling holes in your car and or bashing parts of it with a hammer. The older cars like mine don't always give up easily like the newer ones.

Thanks to Keith my car has achieved a level beyond stock that I'm very happy with. The overall cost/effort involved was quite reasonable and that was important. Keith does a good job letting you understand the cost (money, effort, etc..) versus reward (power, responsiveness, etc..). This lets you pick the projects that help you change your car into something that better suits you within limits that suit you.

I strongly recommend this book to any Miata owner with an interest in maintaining/modifying his own car. With this book in hand it is very unlikely my near 14 year old car will ever be back in the dealer shop again.

For those who don't know, the author works at Flyin Miata; the premier Miata performance supplier in the US. His knowledge is extensive; so much that I consider him the most knowledgeable Miata enthusiast around. It shows in this book.
The book is well written, easy to understand, and effectively helps the reader tackle projects normally left to a professional. The most common projects are covered.
A must have for those who want to save money and work on their cars on their own.

If there's anything you want to do with your Miata it's probably in here. It doesn't go into heavy detail on each job, but it sums it up well, lists the needed tools and tells you about things you might encounter and how to handle them. If you are absolutely clueless about mechanical work you can't use this alone, but it's very nice for something Miata specific and how to do things easily well described by an expert that have done it many times. Keith Tanner uses easy to understand words and it is all basic enough even for us that haven't got an engineering degree. I recommend it for all Miata owners, worst that can happen is that you just look at the pictures.

This book is a great start to give ideas to Miata owners of the enhancement potential of their cars. The book assumes a good fundamental knowledge of cars and starts from that base. The projects range from the mild to the wild - yet always staying within the property of enhancing the Miata; not turning it into what it is not. Miata enthusiasts will find the book a delight to read, even if none of the projects are done. Well-written, easy to follow, and the author does a good job of encouraging owners to take that first step to personalize this beautiful car.

I bought this book expecting great things from Keith Tanner, after reading many of his insights on Miata.net. This book might be a good introduction to a new Miata owner, but it leaves a lot out that is covered in the Miata Performance Handbook by Norm Garrett.

The Miata is a great car off the lot, but everyone has different ideas of perfection and the canvas that the Miata provides is perfect for people to create their own vision of automotive perfection. As an autocross racer I'm obviously biased toward performance rather than comfort, and with the help of this book, I've been able to modify my car (and maintain it) to the point where I'm winning at the races. A good purchase, it's saved me hundreds in maintenance fees by being able to do the work myself. Well worth the money!

This book is great for anyone who intends to do repair on their Miata. Much clearer instructions tha most manuals, and written by someone is is a Miata entusiast.

This book is great and written in a very easy to read and understand manner. If you actually do things to your Miata to improve performance or if you just dream about doing these things, then this is the book to start with.

The projects range from cheap and easy to expensive and involved, but they are all explained and illustrated in detail.

Written ably by an experienced mechanic and Miata fan, this fine book will provide you with plenty of useful and clear information for maintaining and jazzing up your sweet little Miata.

Highly recommended.

This book is extremely well written -- clear and completely understandable for the novice, but won't bore the hell out of an experienced mechanic.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED FOR ANY MIATA ENTHUSIAST WHO'S READY TO GET THEIR HANDS A LITTLE DIRTY AND TAKE THAT STEP TO WORKING ON THEIR OWN CAR.